November 9th, 2012 by Piper Smith
As you probably know, the Spanish were really into treasure. Who wouldn’t be? In 1622, six Spanish ships of the Spanish Treasure Fleet were wrecked due to a hurricane in the lower Floridian Keys. For 21 years, the Spanish led operations of salvage to recover their lost gold and silver! But the Spanish ended up losing track of the Nuestra Senora de Atocha, which was later rediscovered and excavated in the 20th century. Later in 1733, a whopping nineteen Spanish Treasure Fleet Ships again wrecked during a hurricane! Salvage operations for this great loss lasted four years and employed methods of salvage such as dragged chains, grapnels, free divers, and diving bells.
Picture caption: A Spanish Treasure Fleet.
